[UntoHim]

Originally Posted by Ohio

Just because we will not receive a spiritual body until the resurrection from the dead, does not negate the fact that Jesus, the Last Adam, became a life-giving spirit thru His resurrection in the new creation. Thus Paul is using the truths of the resurrection to contrast the old and new creations, with two unique progenitors, two unique births, two unique natures, two unique sources, and two unique bodies.

Good post. I do not think that anybody is trying to negate that the last Adam became a life-giving spirit (how could one negate something that is plainly stated in the Word?) but I do think that Witness Lee's teaching regarding this verse needs to be critically reexamined, and yes even negated, and that's one of the main functions of the forum in general and this thread specifically. (To be clear, I mean to say critically reexamined and, if necessary, negated or repudiated)

The VAST majority of biblical scholars indicate that "became a life-giving spirit" is a reference to the spiritual body received at the time of his resurrection, and is not referring to Jesus Christ, the Son of God, becoming the Holy Spirit.

There is one renown scholar, Richard Gaffin Jr., who produced a monumental paper entitled " 'LIFE-GIVING SPIRIT' PROBING THE CENTER OF PAUL'S PNUEMATOLOGY ". I mentioned this comprehensive interpretive work at the beginning of this thread. Here are a couple on excerpts that will give you some idea of where Gaffin stands:

http://www.etsjets.org/files/JETS-PD...3-589-JETS.pdf

Posing two questions will expedite our discussion of the last clause in v. 45: (1) What is the reference of the noun “spirit” (pneuma)? (2) Since life-giving pneuma is what (Christ as) the last Adam “became,” what is the time point of that becoming? A couple of interlocking, mutually reinforcing considerations show, decisively it seems to me, that “spirit” in v. 45 refers to the person of the Holy Spirit.
and a little later:
As the adjective pneumatikovn in vv. 44 and 46 plainly refers to the activity of the Holy Spirit, so its correlative noun pneuma in v. 45 refers to the person of the Holy Spirit. (2) This conclusion is reinforced by the participial modifer Paul uses. The last Adam did not simply become pneuma but “life-giving” pneuma (pneuma zwopoioun). The “spirit” in view is not merely an existing entity but an acting subject. Paul’s use of this verb elsewhere proves decisive here, especially his sweeping assertion about the new covenant in 2 Cor 3:6 “The Spirit gives life.” In the contrasting parallelism that stamps this passage too, few if any will dispute that “the Spirit” (to; pneuma) in v. 6 is “the Spirit of the living God” just mentioned in v. 3—in other words, the Holy Spirit. Again, Rom 8:11 attributes the “life-giving” activity of resurrection to the Spirit (cf. John 6:63). For these reasons, pneuma in 1 Cor 15:45 is definite and refers to the person of the Holy Spirit.

I am chomping at the bit to get to this commentary, but I wanted to hold off and save it for the last. There are a number of other commentaries on 1 Cor 15:45 I want to review first. The outstanding thing with Gaffin is that he is contemporary, and is still an active professor of theology as far as I know.

This is the very basis for our faith. Without the hope of the resurrection, I too would be of all men most miserable.

Amen and Amen!